


Summer Love

by pinknaturecontrolfreaks, stayalivelou



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Fluff, M/M, Summer, Summer Love, Tiny bit of Angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-07-15
Updated: 2013-07-15
Packaged: 2017-12-20 07:28:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,368
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/884602
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pinknaturecontrolfreaks/pseuds/pinknaturecontrolfreaks, https://archiveofourown.org/users/stayalivelou/pseuds/stayalivelou
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Louis expects the summer to be nothing but boring, but he soon meets someone who changes it all. But can a summer love really survive when the summer ends?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Summer Love

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone! So, I decided to start posting my stories here, and this is the first one. Others can be found on tumblr, on pinknaturecontrolfreaks.
> 
> This one's obviously based on Summer love by 1D, because of reasons.

Louis sat on the beach, looking out at the ocean. He was back at the family’s beach house in Porthcurno, a small village in the south of Cornwall, and he was very excited about spending the summer there. Or not. Louis hated Porthcurno, there was absolutely nothing to do there and the only people there were either families with small children or old people. Louis had spent the past five summers there and he had never met anyone his own age. The oldest kids in the village were about fifteen, and that was too young for Louis. He was about to start his third year at university, studying drama at the University of East London and would much rather have stayed at home, but his mother had wanted to spend time with him, and he couldn’t say no to her. So here he was, stuck all summer in Cornwall’s most boring village. At least the beach was pretty, Louis thought and sighed. The view was probably the only great thing about being there. But you could only look at the water for so long without going crazy.  
Louis closed his eyes and lay down on his back. He tried to enjoy the sun and the smell of the ocean, and ignore everything else. He tried to close out the kids playing football at the water’s edge, and the baby screaming way too close to him. He took off his shirt and tried to focus on the sun’s warmth and the-  
“Catch that dog! Please! Someone! Stop the dog!”  
Louis sat straight up and his eyes flew open. He looked around and saw a big Labrador running across the sand, on its way towards him, and rather far behind it he saw a kid sprinting to catch it. Seeing as the dog was running his way, and no one else seemed to care, Louis jumped to his feet and intercepted the dog’s path, grasping its collar. The dog looked up at him reproachfully and he chuckled, leaning down to pat it on the head.  
“Sorry boy.” He said just as the owner reached them.  
“Oh my god, thank you so much!” He said and then bent over, catching his breath.  
Louis stood watching him as he panted and he realised that the kid wasn’t actually a kid. He seemed to be around Louis’ age, maybe a bit younger, and had the most luscious curls Louis had ever seen. He just wanted to run his hands through them, but he realised that would be a bit weird and inappropriate so he continued to pat the dog instead.  
Finally the boy got his breath back and he straightened up, his sparkling, green eyes locking with Louis’.  
“Thank you so much for catching Dolly,” He said. “Her owner would kill me if she ran away.”  
Dolly nudged Louis’ hand with her hand, upset that he’d stopped patting her for a second and he looked down at her, smiling, and continued to stroke her head.  
“So it’s not your dog?” He asked the boy who shook his head.  
“No it’s my neighbours. She asked me to take Dolly out for a walk and she’s about 200 years old so I couldn’t exactly say no. But I’m not really a dog person and Dolly doesn’t seem to like me so...” The boy said, looking at the dog and frowning.  
He looked back up at Louis and smiled widely.  
“I’m Harry by the way.” He held out his hand and Louis shook it, smiling back.  
“Louis, nice to meet you. I’ve never seen you here before.”  
“It’s my first summer here,” Harry said. “My mum and stepdad rented a house and dragged me along for some quality family time.” He frowned slightly again, clearly as excited about spending the summer in Porthcurno as Louis was.  
“Well, welcome I guess,” Louis said. “You’ll soon find that there’s absolutely nothing to do here.”  
“I don’t know about that, I think I’ve found at least one thing to do.” Harry said and winked at Louis, who blushed and coughed awkwardly, not sure if there really was a hidden meaning behind Harry’s words or if he just made it up himself.  
“The view appears to be pretty great anyway.” Harry continued, his eyes travelling over Louis’ still uncovered chest.  
“Yeah, the view’s the best thing about being here.” Louis said and dropped Harry’s eyes, looking out at the ocean instead.  
“I guess I have to go back with Dolly,” Harry said after a few minutes of silence and Louis turned to look at him again. “You could come with me if you want to, she appears to listen to you better.”  
Louis laughed and looked down at the dog that’d been sitting patiently and content by his feet the whole time, just nudging his hand occasionally.  
“Sure,” He said and smiled at Harry. “Not like I have anything else to do.”  
He put his shirt back on, pretending not to notice Harry’s admiring gaze, and they started walking towards the village together, Dolly running a little bit ahead, but stopping every other minute to check that they were still there.  
“So I guess this isn’t your first summer here?” Harry asked and Louis shook his head grimly.  
“Nope, sixth one,” He said. “This is the first time I’ve met someone my own age.”  
“That must suck.”  
“Yeah,” Louis laughed. “It definitely does. But I guess I have at least one person to talk to, now that you’re here.”  
“I guess you do.” Harry said and met Louis’ eyes, grinning. “So, where are you from?”  
“Doncaster, but I’m at university in London right now. What about you?”  
“Holmes Chapel, Cheshire.” Harry said.  
“How old are you?”  
“Eighteen.” Louis smiled to himself. Eighteen was good, eighteen was definitely good.  
It didn’t take them long to reach Harry’s and Dolly’s houses. They dropped Dolly off at her owner’s, who thanked them thoroughly and told them to come back any time they wanted, and then they went to lay down in Harry’s garden. His parents weren’t there and he didn’t have a house key, Louis was surprised they’d even bothered to lock the door at all, but they didn’t mind being outside.  
“So what do you do around here?” Harry asked and Louis laughed humourlessly.  
“Absolutely nothing,” he said. “You go to the beach, and that’s it. There’s nothing else to do.”  
“Then I guess we’ll have to find a way to make things more interesting.”

The next day Louis was on his way to the beach when he spotted a familiar figure walking in front of him.  
“Harry!” He called out and the younger boy spun around, grinning as he recognised Louis.  
“Hi there.” Harry said as Louis caught up with him.  
“Hey. You going to the beach?”  
“Yeah, turns out you were right and there’s nothing else to do here. It sucks.”  
Louis nodded in agreement, he was very aware of that. They walked down to the beach together, just talking casually. Louis had been really glad to find someone his own age in Porthcurno but he was surprised to see how well they really got on. Harry was just so easy to talk to, and Louis couldn’t remember the last time he’d laughed so much or so carelessly. This summer could actually turn out to be quite good, he thought to himself. For the first time ever, he didn’t mind being in Porthcurno.  
They talked about their families and Harry told Louis about his older sister who’d been allowed to stay in Holmes Chapel, because apparently she had to work.  
“I told my mum that I wanted to stay and work too but since I probably won’t be home this year she wanted to spend time with me.”  
Harry was hoping to go to America in the fall, to study photography. He’d applied for a scholarship and now he was just waiting to find out if he’d gotten it or not.  
They arrived at the beach and sat down, looking around them.  
“This is actually quite nice.” Harry said and Louis smiled.  
“It is if you have company.”  
They stayed at the beach all day, talking about their lives and as they walked back to the village Louis felt like he’d known Harry his whole life. It was weird and stupid, and a bit cliché, but he kind of felt like he’d never connected with someone like that before. They said goodbye at Harry’s house, and arranged to meet there the next day. Louis walked back to his own house, smiling the whole way. He felt ridiculous, but he couldn’t help it. There was just something about the sweet, curly-haired boy from Cheshire.

Click.  
Louis opened his eyes at the sound and looked around, gaze locking on Harry. The younger boy was pointing his camera at him, smiling brightly.  
“You did not just take a picture of me.” Louis said, frowning as Harry laughed. He didn’t answer Louis’ question, instead he raised his camera to take another picture.  
“You’re horrible.” Louis said and closed his eyes again. He and Harry were at the beach again, where else would they be, and they were getting along just as well as they had the day before. It was really nice, spending time with each other. They didn’t have to talk, it was just as nice when Harry was focusing on his camera and Louis was focusing on his tan. They just fit really well.  
“I’m not horrible,” Harry protested, snapping yet another picture and Louis frowned as he heard the familiar click. “I’m adorable.”  
“True, but do you seriously have to take pictures of me?” Louis opened his eyes again, glancing at Harry. “You’re at a beach with a wonderful view, there are so many other things to capture. Things that want to be captured.”  
Harry smiled and snapped another picture before pointing the lens towards the ocean, fulfilling Louis’ wish and earning himself a bright smile from the Doncaster boy.

“It’s too loud here.” Harry complained and Louis opened his eyes to look at him. They were lying on the beach again, like every other day for the past week. The beach was always pretty crowded, but today it was worse than ever and Harry was definitely right, it was too loud.  
“We could go to Green Bay.” Louis suggested and Harry turned his head, raising his eyebrows.  
“What’s that?”  
“It’s a small bay just around the corner of those cliffs, and you can only go there if the water’s not too high. There’s usually no people there.”  
Harry sat up, looking interested, just as a ball flew over and hit him in the head.  
“Ow.” He said, frowning and Louis laughed. “We’re definitely going to Green Bay.”  
Louis agreed with him and they started walking along the beach. Thankfully the water was rather low and it wasn’t too hard to walk around the edge. The bay was completely deserted and Harry squealed with delight.  
“This is perfect!” He exclaimed, immediately grasping his camera and snapping pictures of everything. Louis laughed at him as Harry walked around, smiling giddily, he looked just like a little kid on Christmas Eve.  
They threw their shirts in the sand and walked out in the water. The temperature was perfect, cooling enough without being cold. They swam around for a while and it soon turned into a game of splashing the other. Louis had the better technique and Harry was soon completely drenched, barely having time to breathe before another dash of water hit him. He swallowed some water and started coughing terribly, so Louis stopped and watched him, laughing as Harry scowled at him.  
“You look like a wet cat.” He said, laughing louder as Harry sneered and hissed at him.  
“I can bite and scratch like a cat too.” Harry said and took a step closer, still smirking and Louis’ laughter died uneasily.  
Their eyes locked as Harry kept taking small steps forward and he was soon standing just before the older boy. Harry dropped his gaze and let his eyes wander down Louis’ body, watching how his chest heaved as his breathing got heavier. He took one last step forward so their chest were almost touching and they stood completely still, just watching each other. A water drop travelled down Louis’ face and Harry followed it with his eyes, licking his lips as it reached Louis’ jaw and neck. He looked back up just as Louis’ resistance crumbled and he crashed their lips together, snaking his arms around Harry’s waist and pulling him closer. Harry tangled his hands in Louis’ hair and pulled slightly, making Louis’ hiss with both pleasure and slight pain.  
They ended the kiss and Louis pulled back slightly, leaning his forehead against Harry’s, looking into his green eyes. Their cheeks were flushed and their breathing heavy. They stood still for what felt like minutes, just looking at each other. Finally Louis opened his mouth to say something, and he gasped as a shower of water hit his face. He stood frozen in shock as the younger boy laughed and darted away, running towards the shore, before snapping out of it and sprinting after him. He caught up with Harry just before the shore and threw his arms around him, trapping him. Harry twisted and turned, trying to get away, but Louis’ grip was too hard and he soon stopped, letting Louis turn him around instead. He smiled innocently and leaned in, pecking him on the lips.  
“I can’t punish you if you’re going to be cute.” Louis chuckled and Harry leaned back, smirking.  
“But I’ve been so bad.” He lowered his voice and raised his eyebrows impishly, making Louis laugh and take a step back, removing his hands from around Harry.  
“Nice try.” He said and Harry smiled, taking Louis’ hand in his and walking them out of the water.

The summer passed rather quickly, faster than it ever had when Louis had been in Porthcurno before, and they spent all their time together. Whenever it was possible, they went to Green Bay, no one ever bothered them there, and it sort of became their place. When they weren’t in the water, Harry was attached to his camera, capturing every moment, and taking far too many pictures of Louis, in Louis’ opinion anyway. Harry was obsessed with Louis’ eyes, saying that he never managed to capture their colour, and that he wouldn’t stop trying until he got it right, even if he had to take thousands of pictures. It kind of infuriated Louis, he might be vain but that didn’t mean that he liked being photographed. He could never really argue with Harry though, all the younger boy had to do was smile sweetly, and Louis forgot everything he’d been trying to say. Sometimes he even forgot him own name, although he’d refuse it till he died if you’d ask him.  
“Why do you love photography so much?” Louis inquired one day at Green Bay, watching Harry taking pictures of a seagull that apparently was very fascinating.  
“I don’t know,” Harry responded once he’d torn himself from his camera. “I guess I just love how you can capture a moment in so many ways, depending on what you focus on, how much you zoom in, what camera you’re using, what angle you choose. It’s a bit mesmerizing.”  
He grinned at Louis and turned back to his camera again, pointing it towards the ocean. Louis smiled as he watched him get caught up in it again, thinking that Harry was right, it truly was mesmerizing.  
He shook himself out of his thoughts as Harry turned to him again, continuing his answer.  
“I got my first camera from my grandpa,” He added, looking down at the camera in his hands. “He’s always been into photography and he always used to show me pictures and talk about cameras and stuff, and I guess that’s what got me into it.”  
He smiled sadly and looked at Louis, sorrow in his eyes.  
“He passed away a month after he’d given me my first camera. I guess a part of me feel like I’m honouring him every time I take a picture.”  
Louis took Harry’s hand in his, trying to comfort the younger boy with just his presence, not knowing what to say. They sat quiet for a while, there was no need for words to be spoken. After a few minutes Harry looked up and smiled, leaning in to kiss Louis softly. As they separated, all trace of grief was gone from Harry’s eyes and he took his camera in his hands again, snapping a picture of Louis’ before he could react.  
“Hey!” He exclaimed, pushing Harry lightly, which caused him to fall into the sand and give out a shriek of laughter. Lying on his back, dimple showing as he laughed, and desperately trying to protect his camera Harry looked absolutely endearing and Louis’ couldn’t help but laugh too, feeling ridiculously giddy. He was so happy his mother had forced him to come to Porthcurno.

The two boys soon evolved into some kind of relationship, one they never labelled, even though Louis had tried to prevent it. He liked Harry, but seeing as the younger boy would be going to the US in the autumn, he’d gotten his acceptance letter the second week there, he didn’t want to get involved in anything that was doomed to end once the summer ended. But Harry wanted to be with Louis and he simply couldn’t find it in him to say no. He promised himself not to get too attached, it was just a summer fling after all. But as the weeks passed and they spent more time in each other’s presence, and opened up to each other more and more, Louis found it really hard to control his feelings. It didn’t help that Harry seemed to be completely oblivious either. It was as if he hadn’t realised that he’d be gone after the summer, like he didn’t want to think about it or acknowledge it. Louis tried not to think about it either, even if he knew it had to end soon, he wanted to enjoy it while he could. But it was hard not to get too attached to Harry, and even harder to keep his distance. The younger boy was such a joy to be around. He always made Louis laugh, and Louis had never been so much at ease as he was with Harry. Louis had never been particularly shy or insecure or anything, but Harry got him to open up more than anyone ever had. It didn’t take him that long to figure out that Harry meant a lot to him, more than he had ever wanted him to, and as the summer neared its end, Louis got more and more nervous. He never voiced these thoughts to Harry though, wanting their relationship to stay light and casual. And with Harry around, it was. Every day was filled with laughter and joy. Harry was like a ray of sunshine, spreading warmth everywhere he went.

“I think I’d like to be a mermaid.” Harry said, looking up at Louis from his place in Louis’ lap. Louis raised his eyebrows and chuckled, heart filled with adoration for this wonderful, quirky boy.  
“A mermaid huh?”  
Harry nodded seriously.  
“Or a merman, whatever. I think it’d be fun.”  
Louis smiled and looked out at the ocean, eyes sparkling with amusement. “I’m sure it would be.”  
Harry made a soft, agreeing sound and closed his eyes, snuggling deeper down in Louis’ lap. Louis brought his hand down and ran it through Harry’s curls, making the younger boy smile and sigh contently.  
“Do you think I’d be a good mermaid?” He asked, making an almost purring sound when Louis scratched his scalp slightly.  
“I think you’d be an excellent mermaid.” He said, earning a bright smile from Harry. “I think you’d be an excellent anything.”  
Louis looked down at the boy lying in his lap, looking so relaxed and at ease, eyelids fluttering a little as Louis’ hands ran through his hair. “You’d definitely make for an excellent kitty. “ He said and Harry looked up at him and smiled.  
“Meow.” He said and Louis laughed, leaning down to press a kiss to Harry’s nose.  
“You’re adorable.” Harry smiled happily, and closed his eyes again. Soon he fell asleep, and Louis sat watching him, still running his fingers through Harry’s curls. As he watched the sleeping boy in his lap, he realised that he was completely and utterly screwed.

“Why do you study drama?” Harry asked Louis as they were walking back from the beach one day. Louis had been talking about his school and his friends in London, so he probably shouldn’t be surprised by the subject, but the question still made him slightly bewildered.  
“Um, I don’t know,” He said, frowning slightly. “I guess there’s nothing else I could picture myself doing.”  
He didn’t say anything else, thinking that answered the question, but Harry stared at him, exasperated.  
“That’s not an answer!” He insisted, earning himself a stunned look from Louis. “Come on! I explained why I love photography to you, even though I didn’t have a real answer.”  
Louis furrowed his brow and thought about it. Surely there had to be a reason why he loved drama and acting, right? They walked silently for a moment, as Louis tried to find an answer.  
“I guess it makes me feel alive,” he said finally, taking Harry’s hand in his. “Like, when I stand on stage and perform, every fibre in my body is at edge, and it’s a bit addicting. The adrenaline rush you know. You said you love how one can capture a moment in different ways with a camera, right? Well, I love how one can portray so many different characters, just by slightly altering how you act, or talk, or look. How one can be someone else, and make the audience believe you’re someone else.” He was silent for a minute, thinking over his next words.  
“I’m not an insecure person,” He continued. “I know who I am, and I like that person, but there’s just something about acting that’s really refreshing and freeing. It’s like putting on a mask, and I sort of love that feeling. I don’t know why. But I know that I never want to do anything else. Even if I’m not going to act in the future, I want to be a drama teacher or something like that. I just love it.”  
Harry smiled as Louis finished, pulling him in for a kiss, silently thanking him for sharing. Hand in hand they walked to Harry’s house, where Louis dropped him off, saying goodbye with a passionate kiss, one they could both feel one their lips hours later. As Louis lay in his bed later that night, he thought of the past weeks, and how happy he’d been. Every minute with Harry was exciting and filled with joy, and he never wanted this summer to be over. But he forced himself to remember that this happiness would end soon. It wasn’t that much time left before they’d have to go their separate ways, and Harry would be going to America. It was with a heavy heart he fell asleep that night.

A few days later they were lying in Harry’s garden, having abandoned the beach for some privacy, and mostly some shadow. For once, Harry wasn’t take pictures of everything, but talking about his school in America, once again expressing his excitement about going there. Like every other time Harry talked about it, Louis just listened, and smiled quietly. He was lying on his back, eyes closed, so he wouldn’t have to see the joy on Harry’s face. No matter how happy and excited he was for Harry, and he truly was, it was also rather painful to think about the future they wouldn’t have together.  
“I’ll probably be home during Christmas, so then we can meet up, I’ll come to London or something...” Louis’ eyes flew open in chock, but he quickly closed them again as Harry continued talking. Thankfully he was looking the other way, and didn’t see Louis’ distress. His mind was spinning, and he could barely form any coherent thoughts. Did Harry honestly expect them to have any contact when Christmas came along? Or was he just oblivious again? Louis liked Harry, he really, really liked Harry, but he wasn’t interested in a long distance relationship. If Harry had stayed in England, even if he lived in Cheshire, then they maybe could’ve made it work, but not when he was going to America. Louis wasn’t breaking on that point. No matter how much it would hurt, this was just a summer fling. He couldn’t bring himself to talk about it with the other boy though, wanting to spare them both the pain for as long as possible. But he couldn’t listen to Harry talk about America any more either.  
He sat up and grabbed Harry’s hand, making the younger boy turn towards him. He smiled, but kept talking so Louis leaned forward and shut him up with a kiss. Thankfully Harry was still a teenage boy, and kisses were always a sure way to distract him. Louis deepened the kiss, slipping his tongue between Harry’s lips and licking into his mouth. Harry moaned softly and Louis smirked, pushing him down and straddling him. They spent the rest of the afternoon like that, making out and exploring each other’s bodies, all the talking long forgotten. All that existed was the two of them.

The rest of the summer passed by even faster than it had before, and it was soon only a couple of days left before Harry would leave Porthcurno. He still had a couple of things he needed to take care of before he left for America, and so he and his family would leave a week earlier than Louis’. They still hadn’t talked about what would happen between them, and even though Louis knew they had to, he just kept putting it off. Harry was still just as oblivious and naive, and Louis couldn’t bring himself to burst Harry’s bubble of happiness. He just wanted to enjoy what little time they had left. They spent absolutely every waken hour together, and while it was a bit bitter sweet, there was also a piece of Louis that had never been happier.  
The last day before Harry’s departure was spent at Green Bay. They woke early and took both breakfast and lunch with them, not wanting to waste a minute. It was a lovely day, like all the others, and they laughed and joked with each other as they walked towards the beach, hand in hand, stopping every other minute so Harry could take a picture of something, and refusing to be down just because Harry would leave the next day. Instead they had a wonderful time, spending a lot of time in the water, splashing each other and sharing lots of kisses.  
“A part of me wishes we could stay here forever.” Louis whispered as they lay on the beach, drying after having spent nearly two hours in the water. Harry turned to look at him and smiled softly.  
“We could.” He said and Louis laughed quietly, rolling his eyes. Yeah right, he thought. Harry seemed to sense his slight misery and rolled over so that he was straddling Louis. He smirked down at the older boy and then kissed him passionately, pushing their hips together and making Louis gasp.  
“Jesus Christ, Haz.” Louis groaned and Harry chuckled, continuing to kiss him fervently. He ran his hands all over Louis’ upper body, exploring every inch of it, and then brought his mouth down to let it do its own exploring. Louis threw his head back and groaned loudly when Harry’s tongue attacked a nipple, bringing his hand up to card through Harry’s curls. He hissed when Harry bit down softly, and pulled at his locks, bringing Harry’s mouth up to his again. They kissed eagerly, no trace of hesitation or anything, but then Harry brought his hands down to pull at Louis’ pants and Louis broke away, laughing. Harry frowned at him but Louis just laughed, pressing a soft kiss to Harry’s lips.  
“We’re not having sex at the beach, dear.” He said, shaking his head at Harry.  
“Why not?” Harry whined, attaching his lips to Louis’ neck, finding his weak spot directly.  
“Because,” Louis started, his voice shaking slightly. “Sand.”  
“So?” Harry sucked at Louis’ neck, working his magic and knowing exactly how he was affecting the older boy. Louis sighed, he too knew exactly what Harry was doing to him.  
“Stop, Hazza.” He said weakly, trying to push the other boy away, but knowing that it was hopeless.  
“Nope.” Harry purred, pecking Louis’ on the lips before finding the other side of his neck. Louis kept trying to protest, but in the end, Harry got his way, as always. 

“So, I guess it’s almost time to go,” Harry started. He and Louis were standing outside his house, arms around each other. “Um, well, we have each other’s numbers so we’ll call and text, and then we can email, and we can even write old fashioned letters if we want to, and I’ll be home for Christmas and-“  
“Harry, stop.”  
Harry looked down to see Louis looking at him with sadness in his eyes. A part of him knew exactly what the older boy was going to say, but he still didn’t want to hear it.  
“It won’t work, Harry.” Louis’ heart broke as the words left his mouth. He could see how Harry crumbled as he looked into his eyes, but he knew that it had to be done. It was for the best.  
“We’ll be too far away from each other.” He tried to reason with Harry as tears welled up in the younger boy’s eyes. “We’ll just be postponing the inevitable, there’s no way we can keep a long distance relationship going when you’re all the way in America. I’m sorry.”  
Harry frowned, tears now running down his cheeks.  
“Can’t we at least try?” He whispered, but there was no hope in his voice, or in his eyes. He knew what the answer would be.  
“There’s no point.” Louis said, removing Harry’s arms from around his waist and taking a step back. “I won’t call you, and I won’t answer if you call me either. I’m sorry, but it’s for the best.”  
Harry sobbed, looking down at his feet, feeling his heart break. Thinking that he at least had to try again, he looked up and opened his mouth, determined to get the words out.  
“I lo-“  
“No Harry!” Louis stepped forward, eyes wide and filled with fear, and put his hand over Harry’s mouth, stopping the words he couldn’t hear, because they’d hurt too much. “Don’t.”  
Anger and hurt flashed in Harry’s eyes and he wrenched himself away, turning his back on Louis and walking towards the car where his mother and stepfather waited. Before he opened the door he turned around to look at the older boy, hoping to see some sign that Louis would change his mind. But he didn’t, and so he had no choice but to get in the car, tears still running down his cheeks. He didn’t turn around again, he couldn’t.  
As the car drove away, and he knew that Harry would be far away to see him, Louis let his control collapse and he let the tears he’d been holding back fall. Nothing had ever been harder than what he’d just done, and he wondered if he’d ever get over it. He doubted it. At least they’d gotten one summer together, he thought bitterly, turning around and starting to walk home. At the end of Harry’s street he stopped and looked back towards the house. He could still see the car far down the road.  
“I love you too.” He said and then turned around for the last time, never looking


End file.
